ASARCO: EPA report blaming smelter for contamination is flawed

CHRIS ROBERTS

Published
7:00 pm CDT, Thursday, July 24, 2003

Associated Press Writer

Environmental Protection Agency studies showing that a century-old smelter is the source of lead and arsenic contamination in neighborhoods on El Paso's west side are seriously flawed, a smelter official said Friday.

"We found major errors in their calculations," said Lairy Johnson, manager of ASARCO's El Paso smelter. The smelter was shut down in 1999 when copper prices dropped.

The EPA stands behind its studies, said Susan Webster, Superfund site assessment team leader for EPA Region 6.

The EPA started its testing in response to University of Texas at El Paso research in early 2001 that found high levels of heavy-metal contamination on a campus hilltop. The EPA first tested soil in July 2001 at more than 400 sites across El Paso and Sunland Park, N.M.

The agency study released earlier this week found the smelter responsible for at least 53 percent of the lead and 85 percent of the arsenic in its samples.

After earlier taking nearly 2,000 soil samples, the EPA had determined that about 1,100 homes had soil that could potentially cause health problems for residents. It began a soil replacement program for homes with the worst contamination.

Other results presented this week showed the arsenic wouldn't be absorbed into the body as quickly as previously thought. That dropped the number of homes with contamination presenting a possible health threat to 781, EPA officials said.

Johnson pointed to parts of the study that indicate finely crushed slag is a major component of many of the contaminated soil samples.

"At ASARCO, we don't crush slag," Johnson said. He also said the company believes the EPA underestimated the amount of contamination in the slag.

Slag, made up of iron and silicates, is a byproduct of the smelting process, Johnson said. When ore is melted, the slag separates to the top and is poured off. The molten material is deposited in an area at the plant's edge resembling an ancient lava flow.

A neighboring company operating on ASARCO property takes the slag and crushes it. Coarsely crushed slag can be used as a base for railroad tracks and finely crushed slag can be used for sandblasting.

A large pile of the finely crushed slag sits on the edge of the property and may, along with other industrial operations in the area, represent a substantial source of contamination, Johnson said.

"If you don't know the source, you run into the problem of recontamination," Johnson said.

And he said slag, which is part glass, provides a very stable medium for the contamination and would be even less likely to be absorbed into the body, dramatically reducing the potential health threat.

Webster said contaminants identified from the plant include smoke stack emissions and dust that escaped from smelter operations.

"There are forms of lead and arsenic that are solely attributable to the smelter," she said. Webster added that, over the years, ASARCO has reported lead and arsenic air emissions to state regulatory agencies.

"For example, in 1992, ASARCO reported arsenic emissions of 56,000 pounds and lead emissions of 41,000 pounds," she said.

ASARCO officials and some homeowners have questioned whether there is enough evidence of a health threat to merit the removal of soil from yards or listing the area as a Superfund site.

Some homeowners have expressed concern about the effect on their property values.

The EPA has said it only has enough money _ about $7 million _ to clean 200 homes. Officials have said one way to get more federal cleanup money is to list the area as a Superfund site.